Briefly
p. 78 · Read in the full issue
• Maeda Construction Co Ltd. of Japan, has been awarded a contract to construct an international airport on Truk. Maeda’s tender was $l6 490 000. Other tenders from Japanese, Korean and Hawaiian firms ranged up to more than $24 million. The air port will be next to the present runway. An area about 2 130 m long needs to be filled. The paved length of the runway will be 1 830 m. Maeda has been given a little more than two years to complete the project.
• Air Tungaru Corporation
of the Gilbert Islands, which became a separate legal entity on April 1, has taken over the operation of domestic services from Air Pacific. Air Pacific’s only involvement with Air
Tungaru is providing engineer
ing and maintenance services.
Solair, of the Solomon
Islands, provided consultancy
assistance to Air Tungaru lead ing up to, and after the takeover, and has helped to train Air Tungaru staff in air
line operations. Air Tungaru
aircraft have five colours a white fuselage with a horizon tal blue stripe, white wings with red tips, a red tail, a gold half sun and bird emblem on the engine covers and a red and black nose. • A shipping corporation will be set up in the Gilbert Is lands to take control of ship ping from the Gilbert Islands Development Authority. The authority’s marine division is now operating as a separate body, reporting to the Minister of Communications and Transport. The shipping corporation will have full legal status when the House of Assembly enacts an ap propriate bill. The cor poration is divided into five sections shipping, ports, ferries, marine engineering and accounts. The shipping section is responsible for the local fleet which comprises the Moanaaroi, Temauri, Tautunu and the landing craft Makambo. The ports section handles wharfage, lighterage and stevedoring for both local and overseas ships. Captain T.
D. Murdoch is managing the corporation and is also acting
as operations manager. Mr 1 Kokoria B. Etuare heads thei ports section. Mr Teibuakoc Burentarawa directs ferry op erations and Mr Manraoii Kaiea is marine engineerings manager. • A shipping service op erated by Williams Shippings Co (Fiji) Ltd from Suva tO( Rotuma has been extended to< take in Funafuti in Tuvalu.
Using the Komaiwai, 406 ton nes, Williams Shipping is aim ing at a fortnightly service, but whether that frequency can be maintained depends on the amount of copra available at Rotuma for return voyages.
To make the service economic on a fortnightly basis 3 000 bags of copra are needed. If that amount is not available the service will be on a three weekly or monthly basis.
Apart from cargo, the Komaiwai can carry 70 deck passengers, 15 in saloons and six in shakedowns. • The cruise ship industry brings in a lot of foreign exchange to the New Hebrides.
In fact, it is fifth in the list as a source of foreign money, following copra, fish, air visi tors and cocoa. In 1977 it was; worth $1 472 000 gross. Thir teen ships carrying 10,974 pass engers visited Vila in November and December, 1977 and January, 1978.
According to a survey each visi tor spent 5A47.53. The govern ment picked up $222 000' through port duties and import: duties on purchases by passen gers. The survey showed that; passengers spent 39.6% of their 1 money on duty free goods such as radios, cameras, etc, 22% on. clothing, 13.3% on tours bought; on the ship, and 10.2% on. meals, drinks and refresh ments. • Lautoka Yacht Club Ltd,, of Fiji, has been deregistered! and may lose about a hectare: of reclaimed land on the water-front. Deregistration followed! a decision of the Registrar of Companies that the club was; defunct. Membership of the: club has dispersed over the: years. The club secured a lease: of land some years ago and! planned to erect a clubhouse; on it. The clubhouse was never built. The remaining members; of the club had hoped to buildJ it, but because of financial! problems relating to the lease,, have no means yet of putting’ up a clubhouse.